Am-Xitha, Parts I & II (Past Chronicle 2013-2014)

Duchy of Am-Xitha - by T.A. Saunders ©2013 v1.5

Kipash Quarter

Am-Xitha Airship Docks

Not in the original plans, Duke Blackthorne quickly realized there was a need for a hub of commerce coming in and coming out of the land-locked city, to bring businesses and the affluent to Am-Xitha. Thus the idea for a dry airship dock was born. Easily covering the most real estate in the city, the airship docks are over six miles, from end to end, with enough landing platforms to support even Dreadnought and Nova class airships, that the entire Windsong fleet could dock and there would be a few structures to spare.

Each structure is truly a wonder of Glantheel engineering, fashioned from Fire-Blessed Kaalcite, and constructed in such a way that the the weight of the airship is distributed evenly by an array of honey-combed shaped formations dispersed between the six support girders of the platform. There is also a winding stair on the outside of the landing platform and a pneumatic freight elevator to bring goods down from the vessels without having to chance bringing them down the stairs.

The Am-Xitha Port Authority is stationed here, where docking permits and customs are handled. Enforcing Am-Xitha's port are six Sunstrike cannon batteries and a squadron of War-Gliders that port authority officers can use to overtake fleeing airships trying to get up to speed, or board vessels that are having problems with customs.

Am-Xitha House of the Watch

When plans to restore Am-Xitha had gone to the drawing board, it was determined by Duke Blackthorne that there would be not only a standing army and elite guard, but a city watch as well. In ancient times, there was a city watch created from volunteers and a core group of guardsmen. Since there was going to be a stronger city defense, plans for a guard house were included in the plans.

The City Watch consists of former refugee soldiers that didn't want to become Shatah Viyn, but still wanted to serve in some capacity, volunteering Shatah Viyn or retired veterans from the Peasant's Rebellion of 1345. Wearing high quality Divinium weapons and armor forged by the Watch's Captain, Dunar Glantheel.

The building itself is fashioned from Starmetal reinforced Ohratite, making magic effectively non-functional within the House of the Watch, with Starmetal-flecked Kaalcite doors throughout the structure. A rather squat, brutish-looking two story building, it has been constructed in such a way that it could survive several direct strikes of either physical munitions, such as cannon round shot, or sorcerous munitions, such as Radiance or Ether charges. Inside there are the receiving and processing rooms, on the first floor, the armory, offices and bunks on the second and prisoners are kept in cells within the basement levels.

Madame Perish's House of Fortune

Serving as both the city's gambling hall and bordello, Madame Perish Torveu, has gone to great lengths to bring the first establishment of this kind to Vyss. Normally, in Vyss prostitution is handled through private arrangement with a Kimiseada, or Sex-Broker. The public mingling of whores and clients In this fashion would be unheard of anywhere else in the kingdom, but in a city as diversified as Am-Xitha, it seemed a wise business choice.

The House of Fortune is constructed in the flavor of the finest estates in the Windsong Republic, with a majestic Shei marble fountain out front, and a circular, cobbled path out front for carriages, sedans and other modes of transportation to drive in and out of, with a flower garden to rival the ones at the Nahara Chapter House and the one outside the Great Hall. Inside is as tastefully decorated with red carpeting trimmed in thread of gold, rich, thick lacquered Kassoa wood floors, white plaster walling, with priceless paintings Madame Perish has collected in her forays around the world.

There are galleries of various sorts, and viewing rooms for more intimate conversations, before reaching the main parlor where all the gambling takes place. The gambling parlor is also where the doxies will circulate amongst potential clients, their position as prostitute made clear by a black pearl and black diamond cameo worn around the neck by the female prostitutes, and a black cravat with a ruby-headed cravat pin for the male prostitutes. Prices and desires are discussed casually, while bets are made, drinks are shared and a comfortable ambiance is established. Once everything is negotiated, the prostitute and their client may head to the many luxurious rooms upstairs for the evening's true entertainment.

To make sure things go smoothly at all times, Madame Perish has Voraath bouncers circulating the gambling tables, galleries and the viewing rooms with Voraath-sized truncheons enchanted to stun as well as inflict pain. You only misbehave once at Perish's house; those who get out of hand are rarely allowed to return.

Es Xethyis ri Dama Kamo (The Edge of Dreaming Hotel)

Constructed 351 BF to address the growing need for a social center in Am-Xitha, Elvish entrepreneur Silivas Jiliaran invested well over 30,000 sildari to construct the hotel, but simply building it wasn't enough. Silivas wanted to make coming to the hotel an experience that no one could easily duplicate or find elsewhere. Hence, well over half that investment came from securing the services of Ilys Jhal to enchant the hotel to give the discriminating guest anything they could ever want or find a means to entertain whatever vice they might have.

For 140 years the Edge of Dreaming Hotel more than made up for its initial cost investment by giving guests the ability to conjure up any food or drink they wished or be entertained by the Mana Construct, Xandra, who could perform magic tricks, sing, dance and act with reasonable talent. The hotel also housed Elvish, Human and a few Shar'Vaire to allow the hotel to double as ‘covert' brothel. The phrase “If it happened at the hotel, it might not have really happened.” was a common catch-phrase of the time.

With the restoration of Am-Xitha, came the reconstruction of the hotel's exterior, with its large, golden dome, vaulting Shei marble columns trimmed in gold, with similar marble walls and steps to give the structure the same ‘feel' it had when it was originally built. Entering the hotel is as simple as opening the door now, though it isn't immediately obvious that one has entered an extra-dimensional space, until they find the lobby doubling as a sort of parking area for exotic vehicles belonging to heroes of the city. For a more detailed description of the hotel, please read this article.